As I sat down to write this month’s update it was immediately clear that it would only be fitting to pay tribute to the work of outgoing International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) chairman, Hans Hoogervorst. I sometimes feel like I’ve been on the same journey as him for the past 10 years, as will any regular reader of this column. And what a journey it has been…whether it was tackling the global financial crisis when Hoogervorst became chairman, or the resulting series of reforms of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) he ably helped implement in the immediate aftermath.

In his final speech he remembered that back in the days before the global financial crisis there was a consensus that large fiscal deficits were to be avoided. This often led to tough decision making but served most countries and companies well. However, this consensus has become a thing of the past, with public spending increasing post global financial crisis and throughout the Covid period.